Safety first in wilderness survival

You never can be too prepared when it comes to wilderness survival.

Loretta Lynn | Special to the Sentinel
Posted November 2, 2006

"Be prepared."

It's a lot more than just a simple motto when you find yourself injured in the wilderness, and a quick call to 911 is not an option.

Vince Furno, trainer with the American Safety and Health Institute (ASHI) and assistant district commissioner with Boy Scouts of America, realizes campers, hunters, hikers and anglers need to go well beyond that.

"Prior preparation prevents poor performance, and poor performance equals injuries," Furno said.

Wilderness emergencies usually result in delayed help, meaning there is more than a 30-minute wait for professional help, there is no easy way to call for help, emergency personnel cannot reach the victim or the victim needs to be transportedfor medical treatment.

Recently, Furno taught a basic wilderness first-aid course, where certification was good for three years.

Vicki Padgett of Palm Bay received her certification and now will be able to certify and award badges to her troop members as a "first-aid merit badge counselor."

When people are injured in the wilderness, action is the key. There are three vital overall steps to be performed when there is an injury. Call them the Three Cs:

Check -- Check the scene, check the victim and check your resources.

Call -- Make a plan and get help.

Clear -- Provide care and monitor the victim.

"In the event of an injury, safety of the victim is very important," Furno said. "You don't want the victim to sustain any further injury, and you don't want to be injured yourself, or anyone else who is with you."

One person needs to take charge and to remain calm. The basic wilderness survival course taught by Furno recommends doing urgent first aid after an assessment of the victim's injuries, protecting the victim from further harm, prioritizing care and checking for other injuries.

Resources to be checked include: the number of people in your group, how they can help and your food supply.

Participants were asked to bring their first-aid kits and camping gear with them to class. Furno asked the group to gather its first-aid kits and go through them with a partner to see what they might need.

As Padgett and fellow clinic participant Randy Deavers, a scout master, were sifting through their gear, they shared stories about how tweezers and needles are both paramount.

"One child decided to climb a palm tree, and when he got down, he had about 300 splinters, which took us about three hours to remove," Padgett said.

Of course, when it comes to wilderness first aid, the first-aid kit itself is vitally important. Besides remembering to take one along, it's also extremely important to check what is actually inside it.

"Don't buy those first-aid kits you see in some stores that say 164 items, because chances are that 150 of the items are Band-Aids," said Reno Mussatto, a naval scout who is water-safety certified.

Furno reminded participants to check their first-aid kits prior to going out and replenish them with fresh items. Watch expiration dates.

"Also, no latex gloves or Band-Aids. A lot of people are allergic to latex, including kids," he said.

Have enough food and water for the amount of people in your party and watch for environmental hazards.

Among those concerns are: heat exposure (heatstroke or exhaustion), hypothermia, lightning and sunburns. "You always want a 360-degree field of vision," Furno said.

Said Deavers: "Dehydration is just as deadly in cold weather as it is in hot weather.''

Said Furno: "If you wait for the symptoms, it's too late.''

It is important to allow your body to acclimatize, be well-fortified and always dress in layers (even if just out hiking or canoeing).

When treating an injured person outdoors who has a bone or joint injury (including fractures, strains and sprains), immobilize the injury.

"Don't be surprised if the first time you put a splint together, it's wrong," Furno said. "Try it out first, then put it on the victim."

When making splints, you want to immobilize the injured area by providing some of the rigidity that is lost, Furno said. Oftentimes, splints can be made from popsicle sticks, small pieces of plywood or wooden boards, even cardboard.

"Pad well," Furno said. "You always have up to six degrees of motion."

And don't forget, plenty of RICE -- that's "rest, ice, compression and elevation" -- which will aid in most injuries.

Josh Reid, of Boy Scout Troop 837 in Geneva, learned a few things taking the course. "Some of this is a refresher for me, but most of it's new, especially the splints and altitude sickness," he said.

Furno's course is open to anyone, not just scouts or leaders, who want to learn how to recognize and avoid wilderness hazards and to be able to perform first aid beyond a Band-Aid and ointment.

Furno, who works full time for a large aerospace company, has two sons that have achieved the status of Eagle Scout.

For him, first aid comes through experience. "It's mostly common sense and should become second nature," he said. "The Red Cross offers first aid but not wilderness first aid in Florida."